I will be updating the Preview branch with an Alpha 4 RC hopefully tonight (Sunday the 12th of March) so those of you who enjoy finding crash bugs can go to town on it and do all the things I never thought to try.

Alpha 4 changes around game balance quite a bit so there will be a Leaderboard wipe to accompany it’s release.

Since Unstable was originally created for testing the Shipping build of the game (which is now the standard version everybody uses) it has been removed and replaced with a new branch called “Preview” which is going to be used to test upcoming major updates.

Anybody can use the Preview branch and there is no password required. Just be aware that things are far more likely to not work correctly/be balanced/be fun in this version.

To kick everything off the Preview branch has been updated with the first Alpha 4 Preview build.

After many weeks of work the Card Game AI system and Modular game modes tech is in place. From the point of view of the players you won’t see any obvious differences. What you do as a player hasn’t changed AT ALL. The main difference is in how content is authored and how enemies are spawned which I will go over below. More

Alpha 3 has had it’s final patch today bringing the total number of Items up to 36 and thee total number of Item combinations to 46,656 (not counting the ways you can distribute the Upgrade points which I don’t know how to calculate but is immense).

That means I’ve started working on the Alpha 4 update today and wanted you all to know what’s going to be in store.

Now as a quick aside I’d like to mention that there is a backstory of a sort to Waves² it’s just never really been a prominent part of the game. The idea is that the game itself is an operating system used by hackers to navigate Cyberspace. That’s why enemies are called Bugs and Viruses and why every Arena that gets generated expresses it’s seed value as an IP address (that plus they are much shorter and easier to remember than 32bit integers).

The sequel to Waves is almost here! Just a few days from now Waves² will be available as an Early Access title on Steam for $10 (It will be cheaper when it leaves Early Access if you’d rather wait). You can check out the trailer below.

Last Nights Livestream

First thanks to everybody who turned up to our Livestream last night. We all had loads of fun showing the game off and everybody was really nice so we’ll definitely be doing this again and trying to make it a semi-regular occurrence even after the Kickstarter.

Characters In W:AT

One of the problems I’ve always had with Waves was the lack of character for people to relate to. Believe it or not being an abstract sphere with a gun is not enough for a lot of people. During the Stream I suggested the idea of being able to unlock Characters (which I think I will start calling Runners because I’m a hopeless Cyberpunk junky). Each Character has a different set of baseline stats and bonuses to certain playstyles in a similar way to Character cards in a Living Card Game like Android: Netrunner.

I Want Your Voice!

With the introduction of Runners it makes sense that each Runner gets a personality. The original Waves had a pair of Robotic announcers that told you about things like pickups and how little energy you had. These voices will return in the new game (indeed they are already implemented) but I’d like to add more voices with different accents and phrases for each Runner as well as localized versions different languages.

If you have a unique accent (or can affect one) and you would be interested in having your voice plastered all over the game then I want you to get in touch! Drop me a message on email and I’ll add you to the list. It won’t be hard stuff mostly things like “Quad Damage” and “Shields Full” not lengthy diatribes on the nature of transhumanism.

Anybody who gets their voice in the game will be credited as a voice actor and this invitation is open to everybody in all tiers.

We Need Guns. Lots of Guns.

There are ten main weapons in the game right now and five “Super” weapons but I’d like to expand both of these lists. A big part of W:AT is customising your experience with different equipment loadouts. During the Stream last night we showed off lots of different builds that can be achieved and I plan on putting up some videos on the YouTube channel showing off different ways to play the same mode.

If you can think of any weapons or equipment you’d like to see in the game then you can send me your ideas over twitter or facebook or via email if you’re shy. I’m looking for things that will be tactically different from the existing weapons rather than just a re-skin or more powerful version.

It’s been a hard Kickstarter and I’ve learnt much about running a campaign like this. Backers may be looking at the funded percentage right now and thinking the project isn’t going to make it.

I disagree!

New Video

The final week of the Kickstarter is going to be the most important. I feel like I’ve been marketing this game on the wrong features. The fact is that the biggest feature of this game is the Co-Op and procedural “Rogue-like” elements. This is why I’m releasing the following video…

Above you can watch some unedited gameplay footage of the “Dive” mode. “Dive” is a Co-Operative mode for up to 3 players (either online or offline) where the objective is to explore the levels and dive deeper into the world. Depth will be recorded on the leaderboards rather than points and frankly it could keep going forever!

Live Stream

On the 22nd of Feb (a Saturday) at 10PM GMT (5PM EST) I will be hosting a Live Stream event on the Squid In A Box Twitch.tv channel alongside The Pudding Earl. We’ll be playing the game “Dive” game mode in local co-op for about an hour with our friend Dan (assuming he can make it).

During the Stream I will be answering questions from the chat about the game and it’s development so if you want to get to know me then stop by!

Share It!

If you’re backing this project then don’t think that you’ve done everything you can to help. YOU CAN DO MORE! The last week is the most important but if nobody is talking about the Kickstarter then nobody else will back it and we will fail. All you need to do is share the link on twitter, facebook, reddit or any other social network. Shout about it in the streets and accost passers by. Whatever you do to spread the word it will help.

The Kickstarter will run until the 28th of Feb so please tell your friends!

As part of this announcement I am pleased to announce that Robert Stjärnström of Machinae Supremacy will be composing an original soundtrack for Waves: Arena Tactics! This is however dependent on the project being funded so check out the rewards and pledge what you can!